In a nutshellSunil Gavaskar was the first to get 10,000 Test runs and 30 centuries. India's lynchpin of the 70s and 80s, and arguably their first great batsman, he was known for his immaculate defence but was equally at ease hooking and pulling the most fearsome bowlers of all time. More

Sunil Gavaskar was one of the greatest opening batsmen of all time, and certainly the most successful. His game was built around a near-perfect technique and enormous powers of concentration. It is hard to visualise a more beautiful defence: virtually unbreachable, it made his wicket among the hardest to earn. He played with equal felicity off both front and back feet, had excellent judgement of length and line, and was beautifully balanced. He had virtually every stroke in the book but traded flair for the solidity his side needed more. His record for the highest number of Test hundreds was overtaken by Sachin Tendulkar, but statistics alone don't reveal Gavaskar's true value to India. He earned respect for Indian cricket and he taught his team-mates the virtue of professionalism. The self-actualisation of Indian cricket began under him. Since retiring, Gavaskar has served as a television commentator, analyst and columnist, as well as taken on various responsibilities with the BCCI, and served as chairman of the ICC cricket committee. He stepped down - after some controversial comments - from the latter in order to continue as a media columnist and commentator.
Sambit Bal

Gavaskar achieved outstanding numbers as an opener during a period when fast-bowling resources around the world were plentiful

Timeline

March 6-10, 1971 Off with a bang

Announces his class with scores of 65 and 67 not out in Port-of-Spain, as India record their first Test win against West Indies.

March-April 1971 Most prolific debut series

Hundreds in each of the next three Tests, including a double of 124 and 220 in Port-of-Spain, ensure Gavaskar finishes his debut series with a tally of 774 runs at an average of 154.80. It's the most runs scored by a batsman in a debut series.

July 27, 1971 Run-in with John Snow

Attempting to stop a single after the ball was played to midwicket, John Snow runs into Gavaskar. The incident so shocks England's cricket establishment that Snow is dropped for the next Test.

After scoring four centuries in his first eight Test innings, Gavaskar didn't get one in his next 16. He broke that sequence with 101 against England at Old Trafford in 1974, but India lost by 113 runs.

June 7, 1975 The infamous 36 not out

In his third ODI, and in a World Cup match against England, Gavaskar scores an unbeaten 36 off 174 balls as India, chasing England's 334, crawl to 132 for 3.

January 24-28, 1976 Sunny start to captaincy

In his first Test in charge, Gavaskar scores 116 and 35 not out as India beat New Zealand by eight wickets in Auckland.

Powered by Gavaskar's 102, India chase down a fourth-innings target of 403 for the loss of just four wickets in Port-of-Spain. It is, at the time, the highest successful run-chase in Test cricket; it is also Gavaskar's fourth century in as many Tests at the venue.

December 1977-January 1978 Centuries galore in Australia

Against an Australian team depleted by the Packer exodus, Gavaskar scores three centuries, all in the second innings, but India lose the five-Test series 3-2.

November 14-18, 1978 Centuries in each innings - I

Scores 111 and 137 against Pakistan in Karachi, his first instance of hundreds in each innings, but India lose the Test by eight wickets and the three-Test series 0-2.

West Indies' inexperienced bowling attack is at the receiving end as Gavaskar scores 107 and 182 not out in a drawn Test at Eden Gardens in Calcutta.

September 3-4, 1979 The epic at The Oval

In a masterful display, Gavaskar defies the England attack to score 221 in the fourth innings of the match but India, chasing 438, have to settle for a draw as they finish on 429 for 8.

January 16-17, 1980 Plundering against Pakistan

A fine 166 sets the stage for a comfortable ten-wicket win against Pakistan in Madras. It's the ultimate Gavaskar-Kapil show, as Gavaskar scores 195 runs in the match and Kapil scores 84 and takes 11 wickets.

After scoring only48 in five innings of the three-Test series in Australia, Gavaskar at last seems to be finding form in the second innings of the last Test when he is given out lbw to Dennis Lillee for 70. Furious at the decision, he storms off and urges his partner, Chetan Chauhan, to walk off as well. Better sense eventually prevails and India end up winning by 59 runs.

January 7-8, 1983 Last man standing

Against Imran Khan, who is at the peak of his powers, Gavaskar stands tall and carries his bat for an unbeaten 127 in Faisalabad, even as India lose by 10 wickets.

October 29, 1983 Equalling the Don

A 94-ball century stuns Malcolm Marshall and Co, as Gavaskar equals Don Bradman's record of 29 Test hundreds in style at the Feroz Shah Kotla in Delhi. He eventually scores 121 off 128 balls, easily the fastest of his 34 hundreds.

On a treacherous Ahmedabad pitch, Gavaskar scores 90 out of 241, in the process going past Geoff Boycott's aggregate of 8114 to become Test cricket's highest run-getter.

December 28, 1983 Century No. 30

Coming in at No.4 with the score reading 0 for 2, Gavaskar spends 644 minutes at the crease to score an unbeaten 236 in Madras and set a new record for most Test hundreds. It is also his highest Test score and the last of his 13 centuries against West Indies.

December 31, 1984 Most consecutive Tests

The third Test against England in Calcutta is Gavaskar's 88th in a row, a new world record, going past Gundappa Viswanath's 87. Gavaskar pushes that mark to 106 matches - a mark that is eventually surpassed by Allan Border.

The 1984-85 season brings plenty of discontent, as Gavaskar suffers one of his worst dips in form, scoring 140 in eight innings at home against England. He earns more flak for his defensive captaincy in the Calcutta Test and is booed by the crowd. India end up frittering away a 1-0 lead to lose the series 1-2.

February 20-March 10, 1985 Champions of the world

Under Gavaskar's astute leadership, India demolish all opposition to win the World Championship of Cricket in Australia. Batting in the middle order, Gavaskar plays only two innings in five matches, but his captaincy is spot on, especially his use of spinners in the middle overs.

The third Test of the series against England at Edgbaston is Gavaskar's 115th, which makes him the most capped Test player, going past Colin Cowdrey's mark of 114.

September 18-23, 1986 A role in Test cricket's second tie

Needing 348 to win the Madras Test against Australia, India are bowled out for 347, only the second instance of a tied match in Test history. Gavaskar top-scores in the run-chase with 90.

February 11, 1987 A Test match missed at last

After playing 106 Tests in a row, easily a record at the time, Gavaskar misses the second Test against Pakistan at Eden Gardens in Calcutta due to personal reasons, though many believe it's a response to the manner in which the crowd treated him during India's previous Test at the ground, against England in 1984-85.

At the same ground where he became Test cricket's highest run-getter - Motera, Ahmedabad - Gavaskar scales another peak, becoming the first batsman to score 10,000 Test runs.

March 17, 1987 A fitting final act

Gavaskar's last Test innings shows, all over again, why he is such a great batsman. On a spiteful Bangalore pitch and against quality spin bowling from Pakistan, he scores 96 in a fourth-innings run-chase of 221, where no other batsman gets past 26. It's an innings in vain, as India go down by 16 runs.

August 22, 1987 Lord's conquered

In 10 Test innings at Lord's, Gavaskar had a highest score of 59, but the elusive century finally comes in a five-day match between MCC and Rest of the World. Playing for the Rest of the World, Gavaskar scores 188 in a high-scoring draw.

After 100 ODI innings yielded no hundreds, his 101st finally does the trick: Gavaskar slams an unbeaten 103 off a mere 88 deliveries against New Zealand to power India to the semi-finals of the World Cup. That match, though, turns out to be his last ODI, as he falls for 4 and India lose to England by 35 runs.